Discussion -- November 2011 Challenge

[Quokka]

Thanks for the kind review Perpeptual Man and yes you're on safe grounds regarding the subject matter .

 

[Hex]

Oh, Perp. You say the nicest things.

(you do, really, and I was glad the selkie made sense. I did wonder when I was writing it if anyone knew about selkies)

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I think they're reasonably well known; I'm certainly familiar with them, although I've never met one .

 

[Boneman]

I think they're reasonably well known; I'm certainly familiar with them, although I've never met one .

As far as you know...

 

[Jo Zebedee]

As far as you know...

Apparently, they're quite prevalent around here; I must add it to my list of questions for all new men I meet:
Do you have any interest in seals?
An overriding urge to jump into the sea?
Important to check, maybe

 

[Hex]

There are certainly advantages to selkie men, as well as the whole swimming away/ lazing on sandbanks issue.

There's a poem about them that I will post a link to next month -- makes me shiver every time I read it.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

There are certainly advantages to selkie men, as well as the whole swimming away/ lazing on sandbanks issue.

Everything in me is saying don't do this, but anyway: what advantages?

 

[hopewrites]

I watched a movie about a selkie, so I caught on quickly. I liked that one because it said to me that she remembered why she loved him in the first place, her tears being love and gratitude in order to bring about the redemption.
Somehow I dont think you can have redemption without love.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Starbeast - An action packed entry! There was the fell of the summer blockbuster to this one, fast moving and adrenaline. A nice simple set up and then the epic finale as the werewolf takes on those that are the truly bad guys of the piece, the crowd baying for the blood of innocent victims.

Southron Sword - a story from a different angle, seen through the eyes of the nominal villains. It is quite clever in that it tells quite a lot by inference, which really fleshes the story out in a way I would not have thought possible. At some point in the past the Goblins showed themselves up by refusing to fight, and the orcs are worried the same thing is going happen again. How funny hunger can be the road to redemption.

PM - another good poem, this time looking at probably one of the most famous tales of redemption that there is, the Christian redemption of man through the sacrifice of Christ. As such there is not much that I can say, it really tells itself, but the construction of the poem is spot on, the rhyming unforced and the story it tells is clear and uncomplicated.

Phyrebrat - This is one of those that I have an understanding of but am unsure whether it is the same understanding the writer intended! From my perspective then it is told from the point of view of an iceberg, that has spent millennia doing nothing, while the world suffers the lack of water. It will be taken on a journey that will bring it to a drought ridden shore, where it's 'sacrifice' will save countless lives. a unusual, clever idea.

David B - I thought this was a brilliant piece, well written, some great word usage with a solid story at the heart of it. Such a shame it comes across as SF when the genre is Fantasy (but of course one man's SF is another's fantasy). There were so many ideas squeezed into this story that it seemed it should be overcrowded, but part of what made it stand out was the fact it didn't. In fact it gave a strong moving image of a man caught in an explosion, dramatic and thrilling.

springs1971 - This one was something that seemed simple, but just worked so well. A simple farmer figure struggles to bring life to a desolated land, torn by war or some other vast disaster. Only he is not such a simple farmer he is the architect of the disaster around him. The clever usage of font size gives the character a greater voice, allowing the reader to feel the shame of a man truly seeking redemption.

Tisiphone - It seems that the verse entries this time around are particularly strong. even in this case by a first timer who hits the nail on the head spectacularly. There is a lot left unsaid here, but that ambiguity is what adds to the story. A badly treated slave, was she the cause of the lightning strike; was it a protective higher being or just a natural fluke. The last line opens things up for the readers interpretation, but without giving a definitive answer.

Glen - What can I say about this? Not only is it a great little fantasy story but it is a serious study in the nature of money lending, mortgages and repayments with interest A beautifully constructed story, where the characters have strong individual voices and above all else it entertains, and does it well.

Abernovo - So many redemption stories seem to be a tale of people turning their back on their violent nature, putting right the things they wronged, that this story throws that right out of the window. It is someone embracing that violent nature; the fact that in doing so he embraces a redemption is a testament to the storytelling.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

springs1971 - This one was something that seemed simple, but just worked so well. A simple farmer figure struggles to bring life to a desolated land, torn by war or some other vast disaster. Only he is not such a simple farmer he is the architect of the disaster around him. The clever usage of font size gives the character a greater voice, allowing the reader to feel the shame of a man truly seeking redemption.

.

Perp, you flatter it, thank you. This was, I think, my nod to the power of growing things, a bit of an obsession of mine, and I'm glad at least some of the idea translated across. I think it was never destined to be a 75 worder, but it is maybe a concept I'll explore in more detail another time. TY

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Phyrebrat - This is one of those that I have an understanding of but am unsure whether it is the same understanding the writer intended! From my perspective then it is told from the point of view of an iceberg, that has spent millennia doing nothing, while the world suffers the lack of water. It will be taken on a journey that will bring it to a drought ridden shore, where it's 'sacrifice' will save countless lives. a unusual, clever idea.

I read that as being a very specific iceberg, which had something in particular to atone for -- although one would have to conclude that it was an intentional act on the part of the iceberg in order to believe it needed to redeem itself for that tragedy. There is a back story there, in what the iceberg was up to when it wandered into the path of the ship. This is one of my favorite stories so far.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Now that you say that TDZ I think you may well be right, went straight over my head.
I'd love to say that my mind is elsewhere this month and I'm too busy concentrating on other things to give the stories the attention they deserve - but I'd of probably missed that anyway!

 

[Hex]

Everything in me is saying don't do this, but anyway: what advantages?

I meant the way you can control them by stealing their pelt... Which probably says something highly unpleasant about me. But also, I believe, selkies know lots of songs and are very good value at a ceilidh.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

But also, I believe, selkies know lots of songs and are very good value at a ceilidh.

The last is a very valid point; I shall add it to my questions to ask Selkies when I meet them but they must be able to do a ceilidh twirl, too.

Seriously, though, I really enjoyed your story, and after reading the Blue Cabin it's further emphasizing how much mythology the celtic nations share.

 

[Phoenixthewriter]

Ended up posting the first piece I wrote. Had about four other's I'd done, but nothing really stuck.

I can't say I'm completely satisfied with the end result, but it's what I got.

 

[Phyrebrat]

The Lombards of Gehenna is a favourite because I love the split between the set up and end.

The bell jangling fixes the environment in familiar territory and makes me associate with this location all the curio shops I have been in; bookshops, antique, taxidermists so it makes me feel a sense of otherness (although, don’t get me wrong, I do go to Tesco and WH Smiths from time to time). This otherness is built upon by the introduction of the concept of past and future being malleable, or at least affective. Then I'm brought back to safety with the familiarity of glasses, shawl and a ticket which themselves are all deliciously ambiguous in their normality (if that makes sense). From then it becomes wild and the dimly lit and dark place the writer has conjured for me explodes into the fantastical; of red, yellow and orange with the fire, and use of words like rage, hatred and love. Apparently there is a term for seeing words and numbers in colours, but I forget what it is called.

And I like the sense of proverb to this.

Another of my favourites is, Hex’s Selkie because it is all about the story, a snapshot vignette that says so much about the past which I guess is imperative to the subject title of redemption. The apple tree reference is cute for obvious reasons . In films and novels and to a certain extent, music, I look for a visceral response in myself and this story gives it to me (in this case it is sadness). A sadness that is more about the ambiance than the actual redemption.

Phoneixthewriter’s The Horse Breeder intrigues me - I'm not the sharpest tool, however… There is an ambiguity I perceived in this tale that seems to play nicely with the redemption theme. That is, I ‘got’ that the breeder has messed with the horses bred by the others to ensure his one wins … which is a nice twist on redemption. Whether that was intentional or not, that’s where I'm going with it

I'm an infrequent visitor here to Chrons despite the ridiculous amount of pleasure I get from each trip. I have neglected to vote on previous challenges and I am ashamed to say I had not checked the polls or discussion threads until yesterday where I learned of the custom to post here to support and discuss. So I feel a little bit like I dropped the ball. Henceforth I will be a far more vocal participant. Apologies all round.

Also, I wanted to thank (and apologise to) PERP and TZW for their input on my previous entries – TDZ nailed it about the back story – the opening line was chopped and that elucidates the back story; this 75 word limit really focuses your mind on making choices on what is critically needed and what is nice but not imperative. I won’t expand on this until after the challenge finishes. I am really glad you both enjoyed it. Thank you.

 

[Phoenixthewriter]

Well, everyone is certainly entitled to their own interpretation. We have 75 words to describe an event. Though, I'll say I never considered the concept of the horse breeder being underhanded.

An interesting take, which lends a whole freight train of meaning one way or the other on what kind of person he is.

 

[hopewrites]

Oh HB I love it!!! such a rich tapestry of mythology is hinted at in this central piece of it.

 

[HareBrain]

Gosh, thanks hopewrites!

I have to say, if anyone's ever stuck for a story, you can do worse than go and gaze at Egypt's Eastern Desert.

 

[Highlander]

And talking of Mythology, I have finally managed to put my effort up...